rested gal wrote:bdmiller: unclebob's and Tumbleweed's comments are on target -- about how people often hold their breath and then take a deep breath to catch up, while awake and concentrating on something. I do that, too, especially while working at the computer.
Newbie to the
CPAP World, Also a few questions...[/b][/URL]
I think rested gal is right. When I was a kid, I was playing on a basketball team with a wonderful coach. He was a coach in the real sense of the word; not just a sociopathic adult living out his unrealized fantasies through kids.
He noticed that I seemed to take a deep breath before each foul shot and HOLD it until after I shot. I remember back and know that sometimes, since I was already out of breath from running, it was actually very uncomfortable to not breath until I felt "ready" to shoot the ball. But I was REALLY focused on something that was VERY important to me. I won't bore you with anecdotes to indicate HOW important b-ball was at that age, but it was EVERYTHING to me.
My coach taught me to continue breathing while I got set to take the shot... take a deep breath as I lined it up... then exhale and ... when the breath was almost gone, shoot the ball. Bingo. I went from a mediocre foul shooter to the best on the team. This lesson stayed with me all my llife. I used it in playing golf (after I realized that I was holding my breath before each shot until after the swing) and many other non-sports-related sitiuations... particularly programming computer applications and working through any multi-faceted problem, project plan, etc.
Here's what I have come to understand about it. Some of us seem to give our entire brain over to what we are concentrating on... I think due to anxiety over the possibility of failing. The irony is that we are not taking care of the most important part of the solution. Ourselves. We must remember to breathe. And each breath is a gift of life. Nothing is more important than that, no matter what our anxiety tells us. Practice noticing whether you are breathing or not when you are doing something. (I even hold my breath when I'm doing the dishes!) You will probably notice that there are many times when you aren't breathing. Stop for a moment. Put it in perspective. Live in this moment as much as possible. Each breath is the gift of life.
I love experimenting with this because, although I am about to get on
CPAP, I have a hunch there is a way to mitigate and possibly eliminate the need for mechanical, surgical or drug therapy for this problem, which has to do with training my consciousness. Just a theory, mind you, but for me, very consistent with everything else I've learned in this long, sleepless life of mine. I'm looking to
CPAP to show me things I can use and to buy me some margin to work with.
Anyway, best of luck. Hoping for all us, I am
80winks.
(i'm looking to get a Respironics APAP w/
C-flex w/
humidifier and heater - with Comfort Curve mask.)